


Worth It

by ursweetheartless



Category: Deadpool - All Media Types, Marvel, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Charity Auctions, Idiots in Love, M/M, Minor Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-23
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-10-14 18:35:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17513807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ursweetheartless/pseuds/ursweetheartless
Summary: It's Peter's first year in the Avengers charity auction, and he's nervous, but he's going to do it. He's an adult, and a superhero, and he can do this. For the kids.





	Worth It

**Author's Note:**

> I'm still rusty, please be kind. 
> 
> Update to Hung the Stars is coming, but I'm fighting with it right now, so I might as well post something else. Right? Right.

Peter fiddled with the bow tie he wore just a little too tight. He hated dressing up so much, even more so when he felt like everyone was  _ looking _ at him. It sucked. And he was hot, wearing the multi-layered tux on top of his Spider-Man suit. It had been perfectly tailored for him— he had to look  _ presentable _ —all so he could get up on stage and get sold to the highest bidder like a piece of meat.

 

Okay, to be fair, he had signed up for this. He’d fought for it actually. He’d been involved in Avengers business for a while now. He had every right to be part of the stupid charity auction. It was only one night, and strictly no funny business was allowed, so there was no reason for him not to be able to participate, right? Right.

 

Except that he was scared now. He was glad no one could see his face because he was sweaty and terrified. He was seriously on the edge of walking over to Tony Stark— holding court on the other side of the ballroom —and telling him he was out. Ooh, or he could fake an emergency. He’d /have/ to leave if there was super-heroing to do, right? Saving people was way more important than charity events.

 

But no, he had signed up for this. He was going to be a member of the team— and an  _ adult _ —and he was going to fulfill his obligations. It was for charity, it would be worth it. He could totally show up and make a few hours of chit chat with some boring high society wannabe philanthropist, and then go home. They’d be in public the whole time, he’d be in costume, and he was fucking  _ Spider-Man _ . He could do this.

 

Tony let each Avenger pick a charity of their own to raise money for, and Peter spent a lot of time on that. He’d found an organization that funded STEM programming in underperforming schools, and offered free or low cost after school and summer programs for struggling students. He could  _ definitely _ do this for them.

 

* * *

 

Peter almost hugged Tony Stark when he swept in with a smile, one arm around Pepper’s waist.

 

“Good evening Mrs.Gaines. Glad you could make it out this year. How are the kids doing?” The lady turned her attention to Tony, and Peter took a big step to the side so that he could put Pepper between the two of them. This was the second person at this stupid party to stand way too close for way too long, and she wouldn’t stop touching him either. He’d dropped a few hints that he was not a fan but she’d ignored everyone, and he didn’t want to get kicked out for punching a guest.

 

Peter mumbled something about going to visit the buffet and excused himself.

 

* * *

 

He was fine once he got backstage, and by the time he was in position and waiting for his cue he was kind of excited again. He waited patiently up in the rigging above the stage, the MC down below getting the audience ready for the main event. He was going first, because he was the rookie, and he was going to make an  _ entrance _ .

 

He’d turned the dampeners up on the suit so he couldn’t hear much of what was going on outside, but Pepper was there on the coms, playing stage manager for the event.

 

“Spider-Man, you’re up. Get ready to drop in 3… 2… 1… go.” Peter took a deep breath and jumped, shooting a web at the rigging above center stage so he swung over the MC and landed on the other side, dropping into a crouch. He heard the spike of applause and smiled out at the audience. He couldn’t quite resist another little flip as he crossed the stage, demonstrating his gymnastic grace. The suit tux he still wore restricted his movement a little, but not enough that anyone else would notice. Peter hated things like this, but he wasn’t Peter right now, he was  _ Spider-Man _ , and Spidey loved to show off a little.

 

He could tell the bidding had begun as he reached his mark. Once he stood still, it was more nerve-wracking than he’d expected, even if he couldn’t see much of the audience past the glare of the stage lights shining in his face.

 

“Okay, starting bid is ten thousand, and there’s already a taker.” Pepper talked him through the bidding. “Oh, twenty, no twenty-five. Looks like you’re popular already, you little show-off.” Pepper said it with a smile. Peter took a deep breath. He’d make it through this. He considered turning down the dampeners so he could hear what was going on.

 

“Okay, looks like we’re down to two bidders now, at one hundred. 28, that’s…” She rustled some papers around, “Wayne Carthrite. Aaaand, uh, 60? That’s… Amelia Gaines. Huh.” Peter stiffened.  _ Good evening, Mrs.Gaines _ , he’d heard Tony say that earlier. He took a shaky breath, squeezing his eyes shut. He’d be fine.

 

“You okay, Spider-Man?” Pepper’s voice was soft. She could probably hear him panicking, which wasn’t great. He mumbled out something that sounded like a yes, and she thankfully let it go. “Okay then, we’re at one fifty. No, two hundred. I can still pull the plug if you want. I know-”

 

She stopped mid-sentence, and the MC froze as well. Peter could tell something had happened, but he didn’t know what. He didn’t breath, waiting for some sort of disaster. None came.

 

“Uh, five hundred, wow. That’s a jump, someone must be a motivated buyer, huh? Paddle… 21? That’s new, that’s uh… Wade Wilson?” Pepper seemed a little shocked, but not concerned really, and Peter immediately relaxed. He smiled behind the mask, ducking his head. The MC was moving again, turning to Peter with a smile.

 

“Oh, biddings closed. Spider-Man, wave to the crowd, please, and walk to stage right.” Peter did, waving to the crowd and jogging off stage. The wings were dark, and once he’d ducked around the curtain he let out a sigh of relief, a stagehand coming to lead him back to the green room.

 

“Pep, darling, honey, how did Deadpool get a paddle at my auction?” Tony sounded somewhere between angry and amused over the coms. “We had security. There were background checks. How is Deadpool even  _ here _ ?”

 

“The records I have say Mr.Wilson donated well above the minimum amount to qualifying charities in the last fiscal year, so he got an invitation. Then he bought a ticket, like everyone else.” Pepper sounded exasperated. “Security isn’t my department, Tony.” Peter, still smiling widely, cut in on the bickering.

 

“It’s fine guys. He’ll be fine.” Peter was proud of how level he kept his voice, as the adrenaline drained out of him. He was feeling a little loopy.

 

“Um, Spidey, Deadpool is a crazy man who kills people for a living. What part of that is  _ fine _ ?” Tony said, indignant. Peter rolled his eyes.

 

“Maybe, but we work together sometimes. I trust him to have my back in a fight, I think I can trust him to take me out to dinner. It’ll be  _ fine _ .” Peter reached up and cut the com as he pushed into the dressing room.

 

He flopped down onto one of the overstuffed sofas and closed his eyes.

 

* * *

 

The auction felt like it took  _ forever _ , and he knew the amount Iron Man and Captain America would raise would put him to shame, even if 500,000 was still a lot of dollars. And maybe he’d get more next year. If he came back.

 

Sam was the next to come back, and then Clint. He passed the time by staring at the ceiling, listening to the ebb and flow of conversation. He also ate his way through most of a huge bowl of M&Ms. They were kind of gross, cheap chocolate and brightly colored candy coating, but he ate them without really tasting them.

 

He was thinking. He had started to assume that Deadpool’s constant flirting was a joke because he did that with  _ everyone _ right? It was just the way he interacted with people. And he knew Spider-Man was kind of special, because Wade had changed since they’d first teamed up. He seemed like he was doing better, going on fewer assassination missions and showing up in pieces less often.

 

But he’d thought they were just friends, and he wasn’t going to push it. Peter thought maybe both of them needed all the friends they could get. But now...

 

Now, Peter didn’t have to push it. Wade had dropped a whole lot of money on this grand gesture, and Peter was going to take full advantage of that. He didn’t have to take the risk of pushing Wade away with some sort of confession if Wade had taken a step like this.

 

“Baby Boy!” Peter didn’t flinch when Wade burst in, but everyone else in the room did. Peter just waved a hand in the air a few times before going back to eating the candy. Hearing Wade ignited the nervous, excited twist in his stomach. He knew he was smiling like an idiot, but he didn’t care. “The security on this place is pretty tight. I would have expected a hall full of /superheroes/ wouldn’t really need security like that, seems weird.”

 

Peter snorted, sitting up and turning to look at the door. Wade was dressed in full Deadpool regalia, though his holsters were empty and the katanas were missing from his back.

 

“Not tight enough if  _ you _ got in.” Peter aimed for spider man’s usual biting tone, but it was softer. He didn’t care about that either. Deadpool pouted theatrically behind his mask, clutching his chest.

 

“You wound me deeply. I thought we were friends, kid.” There was an out of breath security guy behind Wade suddenly, hand hovering over his shoulder nervously.

 

“Sir, you can’t be back here. You’ll have to come with me-“ Peter interrupted him with a grin.

 

“He’s fine. I promise he’ll behave, or I’ll take care of escorting him out myself. Okay? Okay.” The security guard looked dubious, so Peter stood up, stretching, and marched over to Wade. He grabbed him by the wrist— the red of his suit over the deeper red of Deadpool’s always made him smile —and pulled him into the room. “Seriously. There is nowhere safer than right here where a whole room of superheroes can keep an eye on him. Now go do your actual job please, before Miss Potts has to deal with /this/ too. Sorry to have bothered you.”

 

Wade let Peter pull him over to the couch, waving to the security guard by wiggling his fingers daintily.

 

“We thank you for your service!” Wade yelled, as the guard turned and left with a heavy sigh. Peter rolled his eyes but he was still smiling like an idiot behind the mask.

 

They sat there quietly, Peter half nodding off with Wade’s arm thrown over his shoulders to keep him upright and the rest of them— wade included —chatting amiably. Tony busted into the room as soon as the festivities were officially over.

 

“What the  _ fuck _ Wilson? Why are you here and what are you up to? No, you know what forget it. I don’t care. Just... you’ll have to officially register the time and location for your date with the organizing committee, like everyone else.” Peter rolled his eyes, sitting up with a yawn, ready to butt in as soon as Stark was finished. “And you’re meeting at the tower, then dropping him back off there when you’re done.” Wade blinked at him— and Peter would have to ask him how his mask did that one of these days —and waved a hand dismissively.

 

“Yeah, that’s great Iron Douche. We’re not going on a date though.”

 

“ _ What _ ?” Everyone in the room said, pretty much in unison. Wade shrugged, and Peter turned to stare at him.

 

“Yeah, you looked real uncomfortable up there, baby boy. I didn’t want you to get stuck going on a date with either of those weird old people, so I stepped in.” He shrugged, slouching back into the couch again, face turned to Peter. “That’s what friends do.”

 

He looked so proud of himself, and everyone else in the room relaxed. Peter blinked at him for a moment, still processing.

 

“Hey, can I go then? Are we done?” Peter said it evenly, like nothing was wrong. Tony shrugged.

 

“Sure kid, whatever. Go home and get some rest.” So Peter left.

 

* * *

Peter didn’t pay any attention to where he was going until he was outside, on the edge of the theater’s roof. He was crying before he sat down, which was ridiculous and  _ stupid _ but it was a good release anyway.

 

It had been a stupid thought in the first place. Wade was just like this with all his friends, and Peter didn’t want to ruin that by pushing the subject. He really didn’t want to get the friend zone boundaries lecture, and he really  _ really _ didn’t want to sit there while Wade pulled away from him. He’d worked hard to get close enough to Deadpool that he could be close to  _ Wade _ and he didn’t want to ruin that.

 

This was proof that Wade didn’t want him  _ like that _ and it hurt. He’d have to get over it though because holding on to this wouldn’t be fair, not when neither of them could really afford to lose a friend.

 

He didn’t hear anyone coming until Wade was sitting down beside him, throwing an arm back over his shoulder. Peter wondered if Wade could tell he was crying. He was still wearing the mask.

 

“Wanna let me know what’s going on, babe?” Peter scrubbed at his face, shaking his head.

 

"Not really." And fuck, if Wade didn't know he'd lost it before, he does  _ now _ because his voice sounds like shit. Peter curls up, burying his face in his arms. Wade pulls him in tighter.

 

"Can you tell me anyways, please? I need to know who to murder for making you cry." Wade says, cheerfully. Peter flinches, then he sighs.

 

"Don't murder anyone Wade, this is just something I have to deal with. I'm a grown-up and I can't just let you  _ shoot _ all my problems." He's not crying anymore, which is nice. He takes a deep breath, head still buried in his arms. He  _ is _ a grown-up, he should just ask. "So, to be clear here, you have no interest in taking me out on a date."

 

Wade is silent for a long moment, though he keeps his arm around Peter, so there's that at least.

 

"Spidey, I think I've been  _ very _ clear that I would  _ absolutely _ take you out on a date anytime you wanted. Like, I've been saying this for  _ years _ ." He shifts but still holds onto Peter, pausing for a moment. "And you’ve been very clear that you don't want to go on a date. Like you say that every time. You say no, or change the subject. Tell me what I'm missing here, please?"

 

Peter blushes behind the mask because he  _ does _ do that, and now he feels like even more of a dick.

 

"Yeah, but you do that to  _ everybody _ . You flirt with anything that moves, I stopped really taking it seriously a long time ago." Peter sniffles, moving to rub his eyes through the mask. Crying like this inside the mask is not comfortable, and now his whole face is wet and cold, and the fabric is stiff against his cheeks, and he's feeling petulant about it. "Not that I don't like it, because I do. I just..." He trailed off miserably. He’s already in a hole here, and he’s just digging it deeper. He should just drop it.

 

"So when I bought you for the evening..." Wade begins, then trails off. Peter snuffles pathetically.

 

"I just... I got excited that we'd finally go on a date. Then you said no, like  _ of course not _ and I just felt dumb. I mean, this is dumb. I'm sorry. I'll let it go, and we can just-" Deadpool smacked a hand over his mouth, cutting him off.

 

"Baby Boy, I love you, but shut up please.  _ This _ is dumb. We're going on a date. Not because I bought it, but because you want to." He moves his hand, cupping Peter's cheek through the mask and pulling him around so they were looking at each other. He could see Wade smiling widely behind the mask, and it made his chest ache for a moment.

 

"And we're not telling the Iron Douche anything, because fuck that. This is gonna be  _ our _ date." Wade kissed him on the forehead, mask against mask, and Peter smiles.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments, Kudos, and Constructive criticism are always welcome. Thanks for reading!
> 
> Come yell at me on tumblr, im @ursweetheartless  
> <<33


End file.
